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Balbo Monument

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The Balbo Monument consists of a column that is approximately 2,000 years old dating from between 117 and 38 BC and a contemporary stone base. It was taken from an ancient port town outside of Rome by Benito Mussolini and given to the city of Chicago in 1933 to honor the trans-Atlantic flight led by Italo Balbo to the Century of Progress Worlds Fair.

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26-698: The Balbo Monument includes a column that was taken from a site about 200 meters outside of Porta Marina in Ostia . The building that the column originated from is called the Prospetto a Mare which translates to the Prospectus to Sea. Due to extensive renovation that was done during the second century AD, many of the buildings throughout the settlement of Ostia were repurposed or built over. Although this building endured through years of change and innovation, there are very few records still in existence that pertain to

52-420: A Mediterranean climate ( Köppen climate classification : Csa , a code indicating warm-temperate with dry, hot summers). Located on the coast, enjoys warmer winters and cooler summers than central Rome. The regional Metromare , which carries over 90,000 passengers a day, connects Rome's Ostia neighborhood to the centre of Rome, providing up to 12 journeys per hour during rush hour. The full length of

78-513: A house property of the Diocesi of Rome, on their way back to Africa after Augustine's conversion to Christianity. Given the important position at the mouth of the Tiber, Cardinal Giuliano della Rovere ordered the construction of a fortress to defend the river to stem pirate raids; however, a major flood in 1557 diverted the course of the river, nullifying the strategic function of the fort, which

104-586: A message in Italian. In English the message reads: This column twenty centuries old erected on the beach of Ostia port of Imperial Rome to safeguard the fortunes and victories of the Roman triremes Fascist Italy, by command of Benito Mussolini, presents to Chicago exaltation, symbol, memorial of the Atlantic Squadron led by Balbo that with Roman daring flew across the ocean in

130-442: Is an active seaside resort , the official seaside resort of the city of Rome , equipped with beaches, dedicated facilities, restaurants, hotels and points of interest. Ostia, due to its historical roots and its natural characteristics, is an important tourist location . It is known and famous, as it was at its origins when it was completely regenerated during the fascist period, as the "Sea of Rome", and consequently has become one of

156-474: Is now a major archaeological site known as Ostia Antica . Ostia is also the only municipio or district of Rome on the Tyrrhenian Sea , and many Romans spend the summer holidays there. It is entirely situated within the municipality of Rome and is the city's seaside resort . Ostia was the port city of ancient Rome ; it had a strategic function for trade, especially for the supply of grain, and as

182-472: Is the exemption from military conscription during the Second Punic War . Later the port, partially blocked by a sandbank, became unsuitable for large ships and was replaced by the hexagonal port of Trajan . Already since the 3rd century it was the seat of the bishop of Ostia . Ostia Antica was especially important as the site of the death of Saint Monica (mother of Saint Augustine ) in 387 in

208-535: The Century of Progress World's fair and placed in front of the Italian Pavilion. While the fair was eventually disassembled, the column was left standing in its original place just a short distance from the shores of Lake Michigan in an often overlooked area of Burnham Park . This token was a tribute to the first transatlantic crossing made by the Italian air force and fascist general, Italo Balbo . At

234-660: The 11th year of the Fascist era. The monument represents a portion of history but it is also valued as a piece of art and it stands as a symbol that has very different meanings for different groups of people. After Benito Mussolini had the pillar removed from its original place in Ostia, he had it converted into a monument that he gave to the City of Chicago. It was transported by boat to America and arrived in Chicago in 1934 during

260-575: The Ostia quarter are Ostia Antica, Lido Nord, Lido Centro, Stella Polare, Castel Fusano and Cristoforo Colombo. Rome-Fiumicino airport is about 10km (6.2 mi) north from the center of Ostia, and is connected to it by the SS296 regional road. The sea quarter of Rome-Ostia is connected to central quarters of Rome and the Grande Raccordo Anulare (GRA) via the streets Via Cristoforo Colombo and Via Ostiense (SS8 bis). Cotral buses provide

286-464: The border with the residential areas of Casal Palocco and Infernetto , while to the south it borders with Torvaianica , a frazione of the municipality of Pomezia . The territory is almost completely flat with small hilly reliefs made up of dunes . The vegetation is composed of Maquis shrubland ( macchia ) and there are several centuries-old pine forests made up of domestic and maritime pines , holly oaks , elms and poplars . Ostia has

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312-451: The building's original purpose. The Romans constructed the column from breccia , a type of stone created from the combination of angular gravel and the fragments of boulders. The pillar is a greenish color, thirteen feet tall and three feet in diameter. Two Italian architects named Capraro and Komar created the base of the monument out of travertine , a type of light colored limestone frequently used in Roman architecture. They inscribed

338-579: The end of Second World War, the anti-fascist Italian ambassador to the United States Alberto Tarchiani requested that the tributes to Balbo be removed. Mayor Edward J. Kelly , surprised, reportedly asked: "Why? Didn't Balbo cross the Atlantic?" Balbo's pillar endured in spite of intermittent objections. In 2017 there was discussion about removing the monument, but as of December 2023 it remains in place. Mixed emotions about

364-537: The line is 28.359 kilometres (17.621 mi). It has 13 stops, and the journey time is roughly 37 minutes. The Metromare railway intersects the metro line B at the EUR Magliana and Basilica San Paolo stations and at the terminus Roma Porta San Paolo , where it is possible to change to the station Piramide ( Rome Metro , Line B ) and with the Roma Ostiense railway station . Rail stops in

390-519: The main base of the Roman navy . It had a fundamental function during the Punic Wars , and after the final destruction of Carthage , and the end of Macedon's independence ; by the latter half of the 2nd century BC, Roman control over all of what was later to be dubbed Mare Nostrum ("our sea") had been established. The ancient city of Ostia stood in a strategic point near the mouth of the Tiber and

416-476: The monument survive to this day: some observers regard its link to Fascism as unacceptable, while older Chicago residents hold on to fond memories of an age of progress. Ostia (Rome) Ostia ( / ˈ ɒ s t i ə / , Italian: [ˈɔstja] ; officially Lido di Ostia ) is a large neighbourhood in the Municipio X of the comune of Rome , Italy, near the ancient port of Rome, which

442-648: The most populous and sought-after neighborhoods in Rome. The main (and often crowded) free beaches of Ostia extend in the southern area, protected with dunes and rich in Mediterranean flora . The neighborhood is located on the Tyrrhenian coast, close to Acilia and separated from Fiumicino by the mouth of the Tiber . Other borders are the pine forest of Castelfusano and Viale dei Promontori, which represents

468-465: The original settlement in the eighth century BC at the mouth of the river Tiber and precisely called Ostia Tiberina . The settlement of Ostia, according to tradition, was built under the reign of the fourth king of Rome Ancus Marcius , around 630 BC, as the first official Roman colonia on the then coastline of the Tyrrhenian Sea and near the mouth of the Tiber river. Ostia Antica

494-451: The sea, which at the time was closer to the city. The modern seaside resort, Lido di Ostia, is in fact located about 5 km (3 miles) south-west of the ancient city and about 28 km from center of Rome (17.4 miles). The name of Ostia derives from the Latin ostia , in turn plural of the neuter ostium i.e. 'mouth', or alternatively 'door, entrance'. The current placename is a reference to

520-462: The seaside, and Ostia experienced a tourist boom. Italian intellectual, film director and poet Pier Paolo Pasolini was assassinated near the water aerodrome on 2 November 1975. In 1976, Ostia became part of the X Municipio of the comune of Rome. Nowadays, due to the expansion of the city, only the Park of Castelfusano separates Ostia from the other quarters of Rome. The Ostia quarter

546-468: The time and the stylistic themes of Italian rationalism . New infrastructure, such as a second road to Rome (Via del Mare'), the promenade, and a water airport, were all built during this period. The new Via Cristoforo Colombo was built on the occasion of the 1942 universal exhibition, to connect the EUR district to Ostia and the center of Rome. After World War II , many bathing establishments were built on

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572-493: The time of this celebration, relations between Fascist Italy and the United States were friendly. In fact, they had been for most of the duration of the regime. Mussolini, Grandi, Balbo and others were recurringly portrayed in a positive light on American media, with Mussolini featured on the cover of Newsweek magazine as late as May 1940. Balbo in particular was hugely popular, especially in Chicago and New York. After

598-517: The waterfront. The new village was connected to central Rome through the new Via Ostiense, which was opened in 1907. During the Fascist period , the government massively expanded the neighbourhood, which got its ultimate architectural character due to many new buildings in Stile Littorio. The neighborhood was planned, and partially built, according to the urban planning criteria in force at

624-511: Was founded in 1884, near the remains of Ostia Antica. This was possible after reclamation of the nearby marshland, which was infested by malarial mosquitos. The first inhabitants were peasants coming from Ravenna , in Romagna . Due to the opening of the urban Roma–Ostia railway in 1924, the new village soon became the favourite sea resort of the Romans, while many Art Nouveau houses were built on

650-501: Was supplanted by Tor San Michele and Tor Boacciana . An important stand in Italian nationalism of the 19th century was a veneration for the glories of the Roman past, manifested in a wish to revive or recreate various places and institutions connected with Ancient Rome. In 1871, the city of Rome became the capital of the new Kingdom of Italy . A recreation of Ostia was an obvious additional step. The modern neighbourhood of Ostia

676-528: Was the port city of ancient Rome, and is often referenced in writings from the times of the Roman Republic and the Roman Empire . It was the main port of Republican Rome, the main function of Ostia was that of supplying salt and grain although the archaeological site suggests that it had, in the beginning, an important military function as the base of the first Roman fleets. Proof of its importance

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